Payback
by FanOfAnimation1994
Summary: As revenge for bullying Sherman, Mason and Carl pull a humiliating prank on Penny. How will Sherman react, now that he is close friends with her? A three-chapter ShermanxPenny short story from the writer of "You Saved My Life". Rated T for brief mild language.
1. The Catapult Prank

**Payback - Chapter 1 of 3: The Catapult Prank**

As the bells rang at noon, children hungrily flooded the cafeteria of Susan B. Anthony Academy to eat their lunch. Sherman, carrying his Stephen Hawking lunchbox, approached the usual table where he and his friends Mason and Carl dine and socialize everyday. He was anxious to see what nutritious meal Mr. Peabody prepared for him for today. Not only is that dog a brilliant scientist, inventor, athlete, and not to mention; father, he is also one masterful cook.

_"I sure hope Mr. Peabody made me a peanut butter and banana sandwich." _Sherman was hopeful his favorite lunch was waiting for him in the box. "Hey guys." Sherman greeted, placing his lunchbox on the bench, "Whoa!" He exclaimed upon seeing a small-sized replica of a medieval catapult resting on the table in front of him. "Is that what I think it is?"

"It sure is!" Mason, the slim Indian boy, announced, "I built it all by myself, looks pretty awesome, huh?" Sherman, still in awe, nodded, continuing to admire the catapult's shape and form. He and Mr. Peabody have not traveled to the Middle Ages on the WABAC yet. Seeing a life-size catapult would be fascinating.

"Yeah, when Mason said he was gonna to build a catapult for history class he sure wasn't joking." Carl, the boy in the wheelchair, said nudging Mason with his elbow.

"Wow, I can't wait for your presentation." Sherman said, "By the way, is it okay if Penny and her friends Jill and Abby sit with us?" Normally when it comes to a subject like Penny Peterson, whom Mason and Carl greatly despise, they would act hesitant, or blatantly refuse. Instead the both of them exchanged approving looks. Little did Sherman know that his two friends were up to something sinister.

"Sure, why not?" Mason shrugged.

"Fine by me." Carl wheeled himself firmly at the edge of the table. Whatever they have planned, it is going accordingly to them.

"Thanks guys." Sherman smiled. He turned around and saw Penny enter the cafeteria alongside Jill and Abby. The two look almost alike, except Jill is as short as Penny and has pigtails, while Abby is taller and has a ponytail. Penny waved at Sherman before standing in line to get her lunch. Sherman happily waved back.

"Target acquired." Carl snickered, nodding to Mason.

_"Target acquired? Huh?" _Sherman thought to himself, _"What do they mean by that?"_

"Did you bring the stuff?" Mason asked Carl. Sherman turned around suspiciously.

"Uh huh!" Carl pulled out a small plastic bag from his knapsack. It contained unused water balloons. Next, he pulled out a thick turkey baster.

"What are you guys doing?" Sherman asked worriedly, "What's that stuff for?"

"Oh, you'll see!" Mason said. He opened a thermos that he recently heated up in the kitchen's microwave and hot steam came lingering out. It contained chicken noodle soup.

"Guys, seriously." Sherman showed deep concern, "What are you up to?" Ignoring Sherman, Carl passed Mason the turkey baster. He dipped it into the soup and squeezed the top, filling the entire baster with scalding hot broth. Carl opened the end of a deflated balloon with his fingers and Mason stuck the tip of the baster into it, releasing his grip and allowing the broth to fill up balloon. _"This can't be good." _Sherman thought, shaking his head. "Guys, come on, what's that for?"

"Payback." Mason said coldly as he placed the water balloon filled with broth into the basket of the catapult. Mason proceeded to steadily adjust the catapult's aim.

_"Payback? On who?" _Sherman asked himself. He studied the direction the catapult is facing and saw Penny approaching the table from afar with Jill and Abby by her side. It became clear to Sherman; it is payback for when Penny bullied him on his first day of school. _"Oh no!"_

"Guys, don't do this!" Sherman pleaded.

"Why?" Carl asked, "It'll be hilarious."

"No it won't!" Sherman disagreed, "You're gonna get us in a lot of trouble!"

"Nuh uh." Mason said, "I've waited a long time for this and nothing's gonna stop me." Sherman could not believe what Mason said. It was so evil and unlike him. It reminded Sherman of the wicked Ms. Grunion trying to take him away from Mr. Peabody. "Target's in sight. Ready. 3…2…1…"

"FIRE!" Carl cheered. Mason pulled the lever and the arm of the catapult sprang upward, launching the water balloon filled with broth straight in front of it like a missile. It sped towards Penny, who is carrying her lunch tray.

_"NO!" _Sherman thought, covering his eyes and cringing his body in fear, _"THIS ISN'T HAPPENING RIGHT NOW!"_

"Penny, look out!" Jill screamed, but it was too late. The water balloon hit Penny on the torso, exploding on impact and trenching her school attire with the hot liquid. It also caused her to splatter the spaghetti and meatballs from her lunch tray onto her gray skirt, which was also fairly high in temperature.

"Ow, OW!" Penny shrieked in pain, jumping in the air and shaking off the spaghetti sauce and whatever broth has not seeped into her clothing yet. She could feel her chest, stomach, legs and arms burning from both substances. "OW, WHAT THE HECK, OW, DAMMIT!" Hearing Penny in such discomfort destroyed Sherman inside. As soon as Penny maintained her composure, she realized that everyone in cafeteria was silent and looking over at her. She panned around the room, soaked, in pain, and extremely embarrassed. Immediately, an uproar of laughter engulfed the room. Carl chuckled hard while Mason was rolling on the floor laughing uncontrollably. The only ones not laughing are Sherman, Jill and Abby.

"A direct hit!" Mason shouted, jumping onto the table and victoriously raising a fist in the air. "INCREDIBLE!" He and Carl exchanged high fives. Penny stared at the Indian boy with searing anger in her eyes. If murder was legal, she would have killed him right then and there. Her rage went to sadness as she fixed her sight to Sherman, standing innocently beside Carl.

_"Sherman? It can't be. He wouldn't." _She thought as her eyes began to water, _"I thought we were friends. Best friends. How could he humiliate me like this?" _Sherman watched in anguish as Penny fled the cafeteria in tears.

"PENNY!" Sherman cried. All of the children in the room stopped laughing and started to gossip. Sherman could hear Penny's sobs in the distance, which caused him to clench his teeth and fists with pure vexation. "WHAT THE HELL IS THE MATTER WITH YOU TWO?!" The boy shouted at Mason and Carl. The both of them looked surprised and the cafeteria once again fell silent and everyone looked over at the commotion. Sherman knew better than to speak bad words. He swore in front of Mr. Peabody once and the dog threatened to rub his mouth with soap the next time. Jill and Abby approached, staring angrily at Mason and Carl alongside Sherman.

"She deserved it!" Mason replied.

"WHAT?!" Jill and Abby exclaimed in unison.

"What are you talking about?" Sherman protested, "SHE DIDN'T DESERVE IT!"

"Aren't you forgetting about the time she teased you and trapped you in that headlock?" Mason argued, "Calling you a 'dog'. Does it ring any bells?"

"Yeah, it was about time that spoiled brat got a taste of her own medicine." Carl added. Jill and Abby shook their heads in disbelief.

"I've told you before, SHE'S CHANGED!" Sherman continued, "SHE'S REALLY KIND AND SWEET WHEN YOU KNOW HER CORRECTLY!"

"Well, I have a hard time believing that." Mason crossed his arms and rolled his eyes. Carl concurred with a nod.

"What will it take for you two to understand? Penny's my friend. My best friend. SHE LIKES ME AND I LIKE HER!" Sherman yelled. Mason and Carl were speechless, as were Jill and Abby. Children started to whisper around the cafeteria. "Good going, now she probably hates me because she thinks I was involved." Sherman, heartbroken, started to calm down, "That wasn't an act of revenge, that was an act of blind hatred. I'm beginning to question our friendship." Sherman turned to leave the cafeteria, holding back tears.

"Sherman, wait!" Carl called after him, feeling remorseful.

"Shut up!" Sherman shouted running out the door after Penny.

"You two should be ashamed of yourselves!" Abby scolded them. Carl looked at Mason, who stared at the floor in disgrace.

"What have we done, Mason?" Carl sighed.

**To be continued...**

_**Feel free to review/favorite/follow. Check out "Ice Skating" and "You Saved My Life". Cheers!**_


	2. Alleyway Apologies

**Payback - Chapter 2 of 3: Alleyway Apologies**

At a frantic pace, Sherman ran through the empty school corridors, anxious to find Penny.

_"How could Mason and Carl do such a thing?" _Sherman thought, _"I should've done something other than stand around and let it happen." _Sherman rubbed his eyes, not wanting to cry. _"Why was I so afraid? I mean, I jumped in front of a car to save Penny once and I nearly DIED*. What difference would a water balloon filled with soup make?" _

"Penny?" Sherman called, "Penny, where are you? It's Sherman, please come out!" The boy pushed open two large doors leading to the playground outside behind the school.

"Penny, are you out here?" Sherman looked back and fourth until he heard faint sobbing from around the corner of the building. He cautiously followed the noise to a small alleyway where the school dumpsters resided. Sitting on the ground across from one was Penny, back against the wall and crying hysterically. "Um, Penny?"

"GO AWAY, SHERMAN!" Penny hissed through her sobs. Sherman's prediction came true; Penny is definitely infuriated with him.

"I have to talk you, Penny." Sherman cooed, "Please let me."

"HOW COULD YOU?!" Penny jumped to her feet and approached the boy hastily. Mascara slightly blackened the tear streams on her face. "WHAT GIVES YOU THE GALL TO HUMILIATE A FRIEND LIKE THAT?" She asked shoving Sherman a few times. She turned to face the other direction. "I thought what we had was special…"

"It still is." Sherman said calmly, "Penny, I promise you it wasn't what it seemed." All of a sudden, SMACK! Penny slapped him hard across the face. "OW!" Sherman exclaimed, covering the tingling area on his cheek with his hand. His eyes watered from the pain.

"Don't give me that bull!" She replied, "I saw you standing there with Mason and Carl, those idiots. I bet you knew exactly what they were up to and it's clear as crystal you didn't do a thing to stop them!"

"YOU'RE WRONG!" Sherman yelled, "DON'T YOU DARE ASSUME THAT!". Upon hearing such a false accusation, the rage in Sherman brewed once more. Penny looked astonished. "Listen here, I tried to convince them not to do it, but they were too stubborn to listen!"

"Why didn't you just remove the balloon from Mason's catapult?" Penny smartly retorted. That sentence hit Sherman like a boomerang. Not much earlier, he realized in hindsight that he should have taken physical action in order to prevent the prank from succeeding. Sherman was speechless. "Hmph, that's what I thought. NOW LEAVE ME ALONE…AND NEVER TALK TO ME EVER AGAIN!" Penny demanded. She sat back on the ground, this time against the dumpster and buried her face in her arms, rubbing the tears off her face. Sherman stared at the girl with glistening brown eyes.

_"Penny's not my friend anymore? No…I don't believe it…this can't be happening. No way." _His heart snapped in two. "I…I'm so sorry, Penny. Honest." Sherman's legs and arms started to shake, "You're right, I should have done something more".

_"_Go away." She whined.

"Penny, please, I beg you. I would never hurt you…" Sherman was then reminded of the time he bit her, "Again…ever." No response from Penny. Sherman could not take it any longer. Tears poured from his eyes as if a flood gate opened. "Y-you just have to believe me. I had nothing to do with that prank. I d-don't want to live the rest of m-my life knowing you hate me for the w-wrong reason!" Sherman sobbed. He has not cried this loud since he was an infant abandoned on the street. _"I'm never going to forgive Mason and Carl for this. SCREW THEM!"_

_"Maybe I'm being way too harsh on Sherman. After everything we've been through, I can't just end our friendship so abruptly. I'm just so angry and embarrassed!" _Penny thought. Having grown tired of his wails, Penny sighed and stood up again. "Sherman, I…" She started to speak, but paused. She tapped Sherman on the arm and he looked her direction. Mason and Carl stood before them in the alley way. Guilt was written all over their faces and Jill and Abby stood behind them with their arms crossed. "What do you two want?" Penny asked, visualizing them hanging from a tree in nooses.

"We wanted to tell Sherman we're sorry." Mason explained.

"Yeah, sorry." Carl said.

"Don't tell ME you're sorry." Sherman replied outraged, "It's Penny you should be apologizing to!"

"Alright, alright!" Mason said, "Penny, we're sorry!"

"Very sorry." Carl followed.

"Why did you do it?" Penny asked, not convinced, "Tell me!"

"We wanted to get back at you for calling Sherman a 'dog'." Mason explained.

"Oh, for the love of…" She rolled her eyes, "That's ancient history!"

"I told you before; we're friends now. We've put all that 'dog' crap that behind us!" Sherman said, "It was all a misunderstanding when she bullied me before!"

"We know." Carl said, "Penny, I want to assure you that Sherman had nothing to do with the tasteless prank we regrettably pulled on you."

"We should've have stopped when he said." Mason added, "Please don't blame him. Blame us."

"I hope in time, you can forgive us." Carl finished, "We know how much Sherman likes you, and we don't want to ruin such a friendship." Sherman and Penny exchanged looks, raising eyebrows.

"Okay, fine." Penny sighed, "Sherman's off the hook. But, as for YOU TWO…" Mason and Carl gulped. Penny nodded to Sherman, allowing him to say whatever he wanted.

"What you two did was awful." Sherman said, approaching Mason and Carl, "I appreciate that you guys apologized to Penny and me, ESPECIALLY Penny, but it's definitely going to take time for us to forgive you. So, I suggest you don't talk to us for a while."

"We understand." Carl looked down.

"Yeah, okay." Mason nodded.

"We'll talk to YOU when we feel it's time." Penny crossed her arms, "Now, please leave us alone." Mason looked up at Sherman sadly. With a stern expression, Sherman gestured his head towards the school's door, signaling the Indian boy and his wheel chair-bound friend to leave immediately. As soon as they re-entered the building with Jill and Abby, Sherman turned to Penny, looking somewhat nervous.

"Penny, I'm really sorry." He began, "You're right, I should've taken the bal-" Penny placed a finger on his lips.

"No need." She cooed. Penny noticed the redness on Sherman's face from the slap he received earlier from her. "Does it still hurt? …Your cheek?"

"Eh, kinda." Sherman scratched the area briefly. Penny leaned over and planted a kiss on it. Sherman stood stiff as a board, eyes widened and blushing.

"How's that?" Penny giggled, "Feel any better now?"

"Uh huh. Much better. T-thanks." He muttered, lovestruck. "Are we still friends?"

"Best friends." Penny smirked, gently grasping his hand. Sherman chuckled and cracked a goofy smile as they looked at one another with deep admiration.

"Come on, I'll walk you to the girl's room so you can get cleaned up." Sherman offered, noticing the stains from the broth and sauce on her clothing. As they stepped back into the building, hand by hand, Penny rested her head on Sherman's shoulder, surprising the boy.

"I think I _like_ you, Sherman." She admitted lovingly. Sherman's heart was no longer in two.

**To be concluded...**

_**Check out "Ice Skating" and "You Saved My Life" if you haven't yet. Cheers!**_

*References "You Saved My Life", another story I wrote.


	3. Forgiveness

**Payback - Chapter 3 of 3: Forgiveness**

_**NOTE: This chapter used to be a one-shot continuation called "All is Forgiven", however I decided to ultimately make it the final chapter of "Payback" due to the small amount of attention it got. Hope this works a lot better!**_

Mason and Carl sat in Principal Purdy's office, fearfully awaiting their parent's arrival after a stern lecture from the feeble head of the school. Since Purdy is in the other room discussing the situation with Sherman, Mr. Peabody, Penny, and the Petersons, there was nobody to prevent a conversation between the two. Mason looked at Carl, who is clearly upset.

"Carl?" Mason spoke, "I-"

"Don't talk to me." Carl replied hastily.

"Carl, I just want-" He tried to continue, but Carl shot him an angry look, which caused Mason to flinch.

"Shut your mouth!" Carl hissed. Mason's eyes widened and felt his heart stop. Carl has never spoke him to like that before, "I never should've agreed to do this. I should've listened Sherman when he told us not to do it. I can't believe what we did to Penny. Because of YOU, I'm gonna be grounded for sure!" Hearing this, Mason looked down. He knows the exact same punishment is inevitable for him. "I don't want to talk to you right now, Mason. So just shut up, okay?"

"A-alright…" Mason muttered. _"I'm so sorry, Carl. Once this all ends, I hope we'll remain friends."_ Because his visit to Principal Purdy's office, Mason was unable present his catapult in history class, which tore his heart out because he worked so hard on it. Upon returning home from school with his parents, he received a lengthy scolding. Mason did not cry, as he was expecting it. He was sent to bed with two weeks grounding. As for Carl, the punishment was less severe; only one week. Even after their grounding sessions came to an end, Carl refrained from interacting with Mason. It was also going to take time for Carl to forgive Mason too, not just Sherman and Penny. Mason was eventually given the opportunity to present his catapult, but it was difficult with Sherman, Penny, Carl, Jill, and Abby looking at him stone-faced, sensing their animosity. That night, after his parents left to go grocery shopping, Mason, overwhelmed by guilt and loneliness, brought his catapult out to his backyard. He entered his father's tool shed and exited with a sledgehammer in his grasp. "All you're going to do is remind me of a big mistake." He muttered before smashing the catapult to pieces. Mason stared at the mutilated remains of his hard work and broke down in tears. _"I had to do it. I had to. For my own good."_

* * *

**_Two months later..._**

The weather is getting warmer, meaning that the school year is coming to an end and summer vacation is only days away. Sherman and Penny sat together at lunch, alongside Jill and Abby, who have grown fond of Sherman progressively since the biting incident. Sherman could not help but peer over at Mason, who was sitting alone and miserable eating a sandwich.

"So, where…I mean, WHEN did you go with the WABAC yesterday?" Penny asked Sherman, anxious to know what time period he and Mr. Peabody visited recently. Jill and Abby leaned in, begging to hear.

"The Civil War." Sherman said, "But before that, do you think it's about time we forgive Mason?"

"What!?" Penny shook her head, "Nuh uh. No way!"

"Yeah, forget that kid!" Jill said.

"Come on, guys." Sherman sighed, "Mason's been alone and sad for quite a while."

"Good!" Abby snapped, "He should feel that way after what he did to Penny."

"But that was like two months ago." Sherman replied, "That's plenty of time to think and reform. On top of that, Carl's been angry with him. I think it's about time they forgive and forget too. Don't forget that we still need to forgive Carl as well." Penny, Jill, and Abby exchanged unsure looks. Sherman sighed and rubbed his face, how is he ever going to convince the three? "Listen, don't get me wrong. What they did really upset me too, but Mr. Peabody taught me that holding grudges only makes you worse of a person. It's unhealthy too. When Penny came to my house for a dinner party after I bit her, Mr. Peabody told me that 'all great relationships start from a place of conflict and evolve into something richer'. It's true that me and Penny hated each other from the start, but we spent time together and learned a lot about ourselves, eventually becoming friends…best friends as a matter of fact." Penny cracked a weak smile, touched by what Sherman said. "Summer vacation's just around the corner, perhaps during break we can invite Mason and Carl to hang out with us often, become less of enemies and more of friends. How does that sound?"

"Oh, Sherman." Penny said, "I don't know…"

"Don't be modest." Sherman assuringly placed his hand atop Penny's on the table, "I know you can do it, Penny. I mean, you put up with me and look where we are today."

"Alright, Sherman." Penny smiled, "I'll give it a shot."

"That's the Penny I know and love." Sherman smiled back. Penny blushed and giggled. Jill and Abby looked at each other surprised and bewildered. Sherman and Penny stood up from their seats and approached Mason across the cafeteria. Jill and Abby reluctantly followed.

"Hey Mason." Sherman greeted and waved.

"Sherman?" Mason said, "Oh, hi…"

"Me and Penny did some thinking and we decided it is time to forgive and forget." Sherman explained.

"R-really?" Mason felt nervous, "Are you sure?"

"Of course." Sherman nodded, "Penny?" Penny stared at Mason, unsure of what to do or say. Sherman nudged her.

"Uh, all is forgiven." Penny extended her hand towards Mason, who gingerly shook it. Penny smiled a bit, Mason responded the same. A potential friendship was already budding.

"Hey guys!" Said a familiar voice. It was Carl, wheeling towards them in his chair, "I noticed you're all gathered here. What's up?"

"We decided it's time to forgive each other." Penny explained.

"Oh, right." Carl nodded, "I'm really sorry Penny, about what happened a few months ago."

"It's okay, Carl." They shook hands.

"Carl, in the principal's office a while back, I just wanted to say-" Carl wheeled forward and hugged Mason, which caught him by surprise. He hugged him back. "I-I'm sorry, that I dragged you in that terrible prank. I'm an awful friend for getting you in trouble like that. Could you ever forgive me?"

"It's all in the past." Carl said.

"Are we still best friends?" Mason asked, letting go of the hug.

"Definitely!" Carl smirked. Mason chuckled while Sherman, Penny, Jill, and Abby exchanged approving looks.

"So, we figured this summer vacation we could all hang out normally and become better friends." Sherman told Mason and Carl, "The six of us. How about it?"

"I'd really like that." Carl said, "You with us, Mason?" The Indian boy only smiled. Everything is back to normal.

**The End**

_**Check out "The Six of Us", a new one-shot series by me about Sherman, Penny, Mason, Carl, Jill, and Abby. Cheers!**_


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